Friday, September 7, 2007

Sorry for the lack of posts today. Unfortunately I had a bit of a family emergency to tend to.

In order to make up for today several posts will be published on Saturday Sunday (sorry for the inconvenience!) In addition, we’ll have special coverage of the Guatemalan presidential elections tomorrow.

In the meantime, we wish to highlight the release of Manu Chao’s latest album this week.“La Radiolina” is the fifth solo album for the celebrated musician and thus far the album has been critically praised in Billboardand Rolling Stone, just to name a few.

Here is a video for one of the songs on “La Radiolina” entitled “Rainin’ in Paradize.”Chao’s political leanings shine through in this very catchy tune which is a little more guitar-heavy than his usual music.(Video link):

Want to hear more from “La Radiolina”?Then click here where MTV.com is streaming the album for a limited time.

Thursday, September 6, 2007

We would be remiss without mentioning a great loss in the world of music with the death on Thursday of legendary opera singer Luciano Pavarotti. The great tenor died at the age of 71 after a bout with pancreatic cancer and his passing has been mourned by many in his native Italy and around the world.

The gregarious singer may be best known for joining Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo as one of “The Three Tenors”, though long before that he entered the pantheon of transcendent opera stars with the likes of Enrico Caruso and Maria Callas.

The clip below is of Pavarotti singing “Manhã da Carnaval” along with Caetano Veloso live in concert.Both perform splendidly in a touching and magical performance together (video link):

A report released this week by the International Labor Organization (ILO) concluded that millions of young Latin Americans face a negative job outlook.Ten million young people in Latin America are unemployed which is three times the adult rate for the region.Add to that the high percentage of youth working in the informal sector and the decrease in prospects for employment, and this leads towards a “vicious circle of poverty” affecting the region’s youth.

ILO Director-General Juan Somavia observed that Latin America is wasting a prime opportunity for social and economic advancement in an increasingly globalized world:

“Young people are essential to integrate the region in the globalization process.All over the world, young women and young men, if they are given the opportunity, make an important contribution as productive workers, employers, consumers, members of civil society and agents of change.

Young people invest their energy, talent and creativity in the economy, and nobody can afford to loose this potential.”

In an op/ed piece admonishing the Democrats for their stance on free trade, Andres Oppenheimer rightly took the Republicans to task for their lack of enthusiasm at the Univision debate:

“Top Republican presidential hopefuls have turned their backs on U.S. Hispanics even more than the Democrats by embracing anti-immigration stands championed by their party's most extremist -- and xenophobic -- wing.

The immigration stands of Republican hopefuls Rudy Giuliani and Mitt Romney have put them at such odds with the Hispanic community that they declined the Univision network's invitation to participate at a Republican candidates debate. It had to be canceled after only one candidate -- Sen. John McCain -- agreed to participate.”

The death toll has risen to 3864 as Hurricane Felix rolled through several Central American countries. Concerns about mudslides and flash floods remained in Honduras though worse hit by the storm was the MiskitoCoast region of eastern Nicaragua where over 30,000 homes were either damaged or destroyed.Despite being grateful that the storm did not reach the magnitude of 1998’s Hurricane Mitch, Nicaraguan president Daniel Ortega still emphasized the damage caused by Felix:

"There are more than 200 people missing. We are talking about really serious damage."

Meanwhile, Hurricane Henriette has been downgraded to a tropical storm but not before causing serious damage while traveling over mainland Mexico. The storm’s death toll is nine after two fishermen died in Baja California.The National Weather Service warned that it could bring as much as a foot of rain in isolated areas and cause flash flooding in northern Mexico.

Earlier this week, both storms reached landfall after strengthening over warm ocean waters.

Wednesday, September 5, 2007

It seems like an eternity ago, but it was on this day in 1993 that the Colombian men’s soccer team recorded a historical 5-0 upset over Argentina on the final day for qualifying to the 1994 World Cup. The likes of “El Pibe” Valderrama, Fredy Rincon, and “El Tren” Valencia shocked the soccer world on a chilly Buenos Aires night fourteen years ago.

Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller admitted defeat in the country’s general elections that were held on Monday.As a recount of electoral ballots continues for a second consecutive day, Simpson-Miller rescinded from previous calls alleging voting regulates in her statement:

"The People's National Party (PNP) accepts the announced preliminary results, while reserving all legal rights under the Jamaican constitution and our electoral laws…The People's National Party, as part of its highest traditions, respects and will always respect the voice of the Jamaican people and their will, as expressed in the vote."

Preliminary results show the Jamaican Labour Party (JLP) with 32 of 60 seats in parliament, and final results are expected to be released tomorrow.An official victory for the JLP would give that party control of Jamaica for the first time since 1989.

So who is Bruce Golding- the apparent successor to Simpson-Miller? He is a career politician who has been interested in politics since his father was a member of Jamaica’s parliament.Yet according to Radio Netherlands Worldwide the ideological differences between him and Simpson-Miller are very few:

“The ideological differences between Mr. Golding's Jamaica Labour Party and the People's National Party of outgoing Prime Minister Portia Miller Simpson are not that far apart. They are both in the centre of the political spectrum.

Many of Jamaica's citizens live in abject poverty, which is why more than a million people have emigrated in recent decades - mostly to Great Britain and the United States. Both parties say they want to do something about rampant crime levels, poor education and inadequate health care.”

“Noriega was convicted in France on charges of laundering more than $3 million in drug proceeds through French banks, with some of the money used to buy luxury apartments in Paris, while he was jailed in the U.S. The French government agreed to give him a new trial if he was extradited, according to court documents.”

A 17-year-old Mexican teen will be deported after being jailed in Georgia for refusing treatment for tuberculoses. Since being in a county jail for about a month, Francisco Santos has taken medicine and signed a consent form obligating him to keep doing so for another nine months after being released from prison.

After being released, Santos will face deportation charges along with his mother since both are undocumented.Yet as the Atlanta Journal-Constitution notes, they probably won’t be back in Mexicofor quite a while:

“Enriqueta Palacios and her son are expected to appear before an immigration judge in Atlanta within a few weeks. Those proceedings can take a few months, and, pending appeals and other actions, the final deportation could come soon after that or take several more months.

In total, he may not be deported for another two years, which would provide him time to receive the treatment locally.”

Nonetheless, the Mexican government assured that the teen will keep getting treatment after he is deported south of the border.

Santos’ case is somewhat reminiscent of U.S. attorney Andrew Speaker who traveled to Europe earlier this year while being infected with tuberculosis.

A Colombian senator has proposed placing massive fines and community service for people caught committing adultery.Senator Edgar Espindola claimed that the $4000 fines included in the punishment would “motivate Colombians to reflect on the importance of the marriage, the home and the importance of family.”However, he included a loophole where spouses pardoned by their partners wouldn’t be penalized.

Naturally, the Colombian media has had fun with Espindola’s suggestion:

“Some local radio commentators joked the proposal would get short shrift in Colombia's Congress because lawmakers were likely to want to hide their own indiscretions in the mostly Roman Catholic country.”

However, none meet up to the failure that was Frank Zappa’s portrayal of a drug trafficker in “Miami Vice.”Despite Zappa’s best efforts, the legendary eclectic musician’s stab at Spanish ends up falling flat (video link):

"We don't know exactly what it is. It's a black, oily, tar-like substance," (Coast Guard spokesman Ricardo) Castrodad said. "The aerial view showed four or five patches, each of up to 500 yards long and 50 yards wide, spread out about five miles."

The cleanup efforts are expected to take several weeks though that could be delayed by inclement weather.

Several Central American countries are reeling after being hit by nearly 200 mile per hour winds from Hurricane Felix this morning.So far two people have been killed in northern Nicaragua and the NationalHurricaneCenter warned of potentially fatal mudslides and flash floods ravaging Nicaragua, Honduras, and El Salvador. The storm has diminished to a Category 3 hurricane though “torrential rains” are expected to fall over Central America for days.

Jamaican Prime Minister Portia Simpson-Miller has yet to concede defeat in yesterday’s general elections on the island as results are still too close.Ballots are undergoing a recount as preliminary results show the opposition Jamaica Labour Party obtained 31 of 60 parliamentary seats.

How could Simpson-Miller “lose” by such a razor-thin margin? According to the Jamaica Gleaner she should’ve called elections shortly after taking power nineteen months ago.Yet the Guardian UK notes that it’s more than that:

“The prime minister, widely known as ‘Sista P’, retains widespread affection. But confidence has been eroded by party scandals, violent crime and sluggish growth. When Hurricane Dean swept through coastal regions last month she was accused of hiding in a bunker.”

As we mentioned last Friday, Simpson-Miller gained eight spots on Forbes’ “100 Most Powerful Women” list.